Say You'll Stay

Part 1: Chapter 1 (in progress)

The wind whipped around violently. Branches struggled to keep their composure as they were thrown all around. The grass danced malevolently along the side walk. Rain rushed down like a livid waterfall. Black clouds stalked over the city. As the storm raged, I sat in an old wood rocking chair, cradling my baby. My little sister hated storms. Even if there was not a single bolt of lightning or one booming clap of thunder, my little Ally cowered into my side.

As I held her close, I felt her little body shiver and shake. Her bright emerald green eyes turned up to my face, glistening with tears. "Camy, Mama come home?" she asked softly. Though her speech was fragmented and her pronunciation off, I learned within the ten years of her life how to understand what she was saying. When she was three, doctors told us that she wasn't a normal child; that she would struggle in life and be very limited. Even at the age of eleven, I understood that she would need special care and gladly accepted the responsibility of watching over her.

I nodded down at her. "Yeah, Mom's coming home soon." I quickly looked away from her and out the window to the right of where we sat. I never liked telling her what I wasn't sure of. It felt like lying. Mom was unpredictable. She had been ever since dad left six years ago. She began gambling a lot and drinking constantly. I basically had to handle everything around the house. I was expected to cook, clean, work, and, most importantly, take care of Ally. Out of everything else, she was my life. She made me feel happy and wanted. She gave me a purpose...

Suddenly, the front door of our little apartment flew open and there stood our mother. Her eyes were bloodshot and she had to use the wall just to stand. The shreds of clothes that covered her were drenched. Her short fluorescent pink hair stuck to her face and neck. She squinted as she looked into the dimly lit room before shooting me a glare. "What? No greeting for your dear mother? How rude!" she slurred as she gradually made her way further into the room. Ally jumped up and hurried down the hallway into our shared bedroom. She never liked seeing Mom drunk.

Our mother turned her icy glare away from me and directed it towards the hallway Ally had just scurried down. As this pathetic, drunken woman prepared herself to storm after her, I quickly jumped up and stood in her way. "Dinner's in the fridge," I said softly. I tried to hide the disgust and hatred in my voice, but it was definitely a chore. She scowled down at me. "Oh, Kameron! Always trying to be such an adult!" she sneered mockingly. Well, somebody has to be... I thought as I resisted the urge to cough at her fowl, alcohol tainted breath. She looked me up and down as I stood my ground between her and my little angel silently.

After another moment, she grunted her disapproval before stumbling into the kitchen. She snatched her food out of the fridge with a humorless laugh. "You know, most girls would rather party and have fun. Girls your age are out having the time of their life with people their age and older. Not staying home with some stupid little girl," My hands curled tightly into fists as I tried to keep my anger in check. I clenched my teeth in an attempt to not say something I'd regret. My mouth sat in a hard line as I glared at Melissa Rose, my cruel, pathetic mother. She didn't even seem to notice the fiery rage she was lighting in me.

She turned her back to me as she fiddled with the microwave to heat up her dinner. "You need more- actually, you don't have any friends, do you?"

Bitch. I thought as my blue eyes bore into the back of her head as if I was trying to use the Force to make her head explode.

"Well you need some." She continued. "You need to put yourself out there. Get in trouble. Make memories. Have fun,"

Great advice. Please, do keep giving me tips on how to be you.

"You need to just stop worrying so much about that little brat," She said harshly as she jerked her head in the direction of where Ally was hiding.

"She is not a brat," I spat before I could stop myself.

She turned her heated, red rimmed, green eyes toward me in a heavy, menacing gaze. She took a threatening step toward me. "She is whatever I say she is," she growled back. "I am her mother!" By this point, my anger was overflowing and I couldn't help it anymore. I scoffed incredulously, "Hardly!" Her hand flew up, making me flinch. She pointed a finger warningly in my face. "Don't speak to your mother like that." She snarled lowly. "Or wha-" My face jerked to the left as her hand stung against my cheek. My eyes watered slightly, but I still turned back to face her. She stood with a mixture of disgust and victory shining in her eyes. I spat in her face and felt her hand meet my face again. This time, it was harder.

I kept my face turned from her as tears began streaming down my face. She grabbed a handful of my hair and pulled me close. With her mouth up next to my ear, she whispered in a raspy menacing tone, "You're nothing but a disappointment," before pushing me roughly to the ground and walking away.

I could've gotten up. I could've fought back. I could've given her what she deserved, but I didn't. I stayed down on the kitchen floor, my cheek pressed to the cold tiles. Tears shimmied from my eyes and over the bridge of my nose, forming a small puddle when it dripped onto the floor. From my place on that cruel, devilish floor, I heard the drunken woman slam her bedroom door. I slowly sat up, wrapping my arms around my legs in a tight embrace.

I stayed like that for what felt like forever before slowly rising to my feet, slightly off balance from being on the floor for so long.